Villagers in homes bordering Potten End cricket club will be better protected from flying cricket balls after a group of power workers constructed a new safety net.

Volunteers from UK Power Networks, including a team of specialist linesmen who normally work on overhead power lines, gave up their time to assist.

The company also donated the use of a MEWP (mobile elevating work platform) free of charge saving the club hundreds of pounds and ensuring those who live next to the ground will have their worries about potential damage eased during future matches.

The club, situated between Berkhamsted and Hemel Hempstead, have a first and second XI who compete in the Saracens Hertfordshire cricket league.

Paul Dyde, who works for UK Power Networks and is vice-captain of Potten End Seconds, said: “The local parish council approached us to improve the existing net at the end of the ground facing houses as it was in a bad state. We have some big hitting players at the club so it needed sorting.

“The council helped the club with funding of a lightweight net, but to hire an overhead platform and do the work safely was always going to be a financial challenge until I thought of approaching my firm.

“We got a risk assessment done and were able to deploy skilled workers who are trained to work at height as well as sourcing the MEWP, labour and equipment we needed for free which was a fantastic gesture.”

David Raeburn, chairman of Potten End cricket club, said: “The cricket club always puts the safety of the players, and our neighbours, first so the net was necessary to ensure we protect those neighbours, and was a joint initiative with both them and the local Parish Council.“However, we could not have installed the net safely without the help of both Paul and the local team from UK Power Networks.“We are extremely grateful to them for donating their time, and enabling us to keep the costs of this installation as low as possible. It’s a great initiative, which has proved invaluable to a small village club like ours.”

UK Power Networks delivers electricity supplies in the East of England, South East and London, and encourages all its employees to spend two paid days volunteering in their local community every year.